DRK Self Sustain: Bring back Tar Pit

[SummerScorcher]

Howdy all! I can't sleep and had another idea for DRK's self sustain lol.

So in 3.0 PVP, there was a PvP skill for DRK called "Tar Pit" which (when fully upgraded) dealt unaspected AoE damage with a potency of 300 to all nearby enemies. Additional effect: 200% of damage dealt was restored as HP (and a heavy effect added to players)- awesome skill, loved it.

I think we can all agree that DRK's sustain is pretty lackluster/not really on-demand, so I thought why not bring this skill back to PvE? Now obviously 300 potency AoE is pretty insane, so that could be nerfed down, but I'm more interested in the HP absorption effect. Say the PvE version of the spell would look something like this:

Tar Pit
Cast time: Instant
Recast: 90 (60?) seconds
Deals unspected damage to all nearby targets with a potency of 120.
Additional effect: If target count is 1, absorbs 1000% of damage dealt as hp, 2 targets 500% of damage as hp, 3 targets 333% of dmg dealt etc etc.

[SummerScorcher]

(Cant edit on mobile so heres the rest)

This way you'd have a 1200 potency self heal just like the other 2 tanks, its on demand, fits in with DRK's style, adds something to our currently outpeformed DPS, and makes use of some pretty sweet aesthetics/sound effects that were removed. Maybe it could even have itself buffed further by adding a Dark Arts effect to it, I can't think of anything atm but it's something to think about.

What do you guys think?

[SyzzleSpark]

I like it. Tar Pit was pretty fun. The community however is god-tier at coming up with reasons DRK should have worse sustain than the other tanks so... fingers crossed.

[Tint]

yess, we need more aoe attacks \^^/

[Freyyy]

Tar Pit looked so fucking good tho

[Umbeliel]

Bring pack Tar Pit and Push Back 2k17

[Brannigan]

I actually like a different idea someone posted around here that was basically just having Dark Arts Abyssal Drain heal you for 1200 potency. In a few pulls it's a loss, but it's a gain on many others and on bosses. If you wanted to make it a gain even on large packs, you could attach a 20 potency/enemy heal to the non-Dark Arts version as well. It'd be close enough to Clemency in that it
-breaks combos
-costs a GCD
-costs (one of) your damage resources
but it'd have the advantage of doing some damage on a single target with the disadvantage of needing an enemy target. Tar pit would work as well, and DRK does need the damage boost, but as that is right now you'd just be hitting it on cooldown for DPS. Like, Souleater actually generates a lot of healing (in Grit, granted) but since you don't really control when you're getting it, it's not that useful.

[Xenosan]

It may not be as good a self-heal action as the OP suggested, but I could see Tar Pit implemented via Enhanced Unleashed. Cost-free AOE health absorb at 100 potency. Change the proc from Unmend to all DRK spells, so DRK will get the occasional Enhanced Unleash Tar Pit while spamming AD, pulling with Unmend/Unleashed, or even turning on Grit.

Healing is a shortcoming for DRK and always has been, would be nice to see a 1200 self heal in the kit, and hopefully more without requiring Grit.

I think it would go really far in helping DRK fill a lot of gaps in their mitigation. And I hate how DRK is the last tank I would take into unsync / undersized party. WAR took a hit losing Bloodbath, but they're still in a better place, which is saying something.

[SummerScorcher]

I suppose you're right in that WAR and PLD need to sacrifice some DPS to use their heals. I guess one way of making Tar do the same is to add a "Can only be executed when under the effect of Dark Arts."
Though that would result in a DPS loss rather than a gain (since DA'ing any other skill is 140+ potency)

Maybe have it be like AD. Its vanilla is just a nice OGCD damage spell, adding back to the fluidness of the job, and the DA'ed version adds the health absorption effect to it. Like this you would sacrifice 140 potency for the heal, it's usable without Grit and it's a needed damage increase. And to make it "Grit friendly" you could have the skill ignore the damage penalty like IB does (or that weird Bloodspiller-grit-potency increase)

[MiniPrinny]

Healing is a shortcoming for DRK and always has been, would be nice to see a 1200 self heal in the kit, and hopefully more without requiring Grit.

As a general fan of the series, this has been a sticking point for me for a while. Dark Knights generally obtain the ability to drain not just health, but mana from their enemies through obtaining what is usually their ultimate equipment set: the blood armor and sword. Additionally, they're known for draining and corrupting their enemies into submission (see FFX-2 and FFT's various versions of the Job), as well as their self-sacrificial nature in a desperate attempt to gain more power to protect their allies and slay their enemies.

I feel like somewhere along the path, the team lost sight of those major aspects. While thematically, Dark Knight is very close to its roots, mechanically, they are a far cry from it. And in the way they are for the meta, they're almost without an identity that suits them considering the identities that fans of the series are familiar with. Strangely, I think Warrior is closer to an identity that Dark Knight needs in the meta. Warriors are the most self-sufficient tanks, they're adapted well to fighting on their own through careful management of their resources and abilities so they do not over tax themselves. Dark Knight meanwhile feels like a berserker, it has nigh-limitless resources for defense and offense, but sacrifices the raw strength of Warrior and the flexibility of Paladin.

The other option for Dark Knight has for an identity is of the suppressor. Dark Knight would need a lot of reworking to become this archetype, but I could see under the layers of edginess, that Dark Knight back in Heavensward was somewhat designed with this in mind. An suppressing tank would have a wide variety of debuffs which crippled the enemy and instead of relying on the defensive cooldowns of Paladin's style, they would opt for severely weakening their enemies with powerful, if short lived curses and attacks. This is honestly the style of Dark Knight I want to see in this game, because it would be Paladin's rival, a true rival. In every case where a Paladin would have something to offer succor to their allies, Dark Knights need, no, deserve another action which would bring despair and distress to even the most fearsome of bosses and trash mobs.

And to make it "Grit friendly" you could have the skill ignore the damage penalty like IB does (or that weird Bloodspiller-grit-potency increase)

I just wanted to add, that mathematically, that potency increase basically is "Ignores Grit's damage penalty." I have zero idea why they made the tooltip look like that.